This invention relates in general to reusable containers having tight fitting covers and to such containers as are adapted to include a tear-off strip to provide security in that the strip must be removed the first time the container is opened.
There are many container designs intended to serve this reusable function. U.S. Pat. No. 3,753,511 issued on Apr. 21, 1973 to Heinz Ruch discloses a snap-on closure having an inverted U-shaped rim which fits over the rim of the container sidewall to permit resealing of the container after it has been initially opened. This Ruch patent also teaches the use of a tear-off strip at the bottom of the outer leg of the inverted U-shaped rim of the closure. The user can readily determine that the container has initially been opened because the tear-off strip has been either removed or obviously tampered with.
One of the important purposes of this invention is to provide an improved closure or cover in that, when reclosed, the cover will provide an effective seal to keep the contents of the container from being affected by the ambient atmosphere.
It is a related purpose of this invention to provide this seal with a closure that can be manually snapped on and which will then be held on against any tendency to pop open because of air pressure within the container.
It is a further related purpose of this invention to provide such a closure in a design that can incorporate a tear-off strip which will indicate whether or not the container has been initially opened and thus will provide a degree of assurance against premature tampering with the contents of the container.
It is a related purpose of this invention to provide a design which minimizes the risk that the purpose of the tear-off strip can be compromised and thus will minimize the ability of an individual to remove the closure without detaching the tear-off strip.